What is the Best NERF Gun in 2018?

A question that comes up a lot is “what are the best NERF guns?” Well the answer is….well, it depends!

Below are our favorite ones for just having fun, but the articles above and below this are there for those of you that want more.

We have linked out to the full reviews of these blasters as well as to Amazon (hover over the Amazon button to get the prices) If you click through to Amazon we may get a commission (it is how we keep the site running!) but it will not affect the price you pay.

Remember we said that the answer to “what is the best NERF gun?” is, “it depends!”? Well the reason depends on what you want your blaster for.

If you play in any NERF wars you will be part of a team and your role will determine what sort of blaster you need – oh and to distinguish NERF guns from real firearms, most people use the term “blaster” and “dart” for bullet regardless of the shape.

Your role is usually driven by the type of NERFer you are, and the type of blasters you have. In NERF wars most players will carry more than one NERF gun; the main one, usually termed a “Primary” (read our guide on Primary NERF Guns here) and a “Secondary”, usually smaller and used as a back-up or for a specific purpose. Some even carry a “Tertiary”, usually a small, single shot pistol, for that last gasp

Of course for some people it is about how much they have to spend, so I have written a guide to my picks for the blasters to buy under $15, under $30 and under $50.

Below is where I go into a bit more detail on why I like those top picks, so for a bit more info, read on

My Top NERF Gun Reviews

NERF Rival Nemesis

This blaster is an absolute beast! It is fully automatic and fires at over 100FPS with Rival High Impact ammo that are so much more accurate and predictable than N-Strike Elite darts.

If that was not enough it comes with a monstrous 100 round capacity courtesy of a gravity fed hopper. This hopper is what gives the Nemesis the edge over the Khaos and anything else for that matter.

The Nemesis is not only the best blaster in the NERF Rival range, it is simply the best unmodified blaster, full stop!

As with all of the Rival range it is available in red or blue, or if you don’t care, just see which is the cheapest at the time you buy and get that, but whichever you choose, make sure you get one!

NERF Rival Artemis

Another top pick from the Rival range, this compact little beast also fires the round Rival darts, which are far more accurate than Elite darts and have higher muzzle velocities too.

You can also partially load its 40 dart hopper actually making it more practical than the magazine fed blasters. The priming handle is also much better placed than the Apollo making it my pick of best springer in the Rival range.

All in all this is a really impressive little blaster that packs a remarkably big punch….I love it!

Zombie Strike Hammershot

This is my fave member of the Zombie Strike line. It is essentially a revolver style NERF blaster with 5 shots in the cylinder. However what makes this blaster cool is that you can prime it with your gun hand – most need to be primed with your other hand. This, along with its size, makes it an ideal secondary blaster.

NERF Elite Rapidstrike

This was the first full-auto blaster of note from NERF; good ergonomics, magazine fed and pretty reliable for a fly-wheeler.

Yes, the Hyperfire (see my review here) has come along which has a better rate of fire and is more accurate, but I find it jams too often (the conveyor belt system doesn’t seem to like older darts) and the design of the grip makes it uncomfortable for me to use.

So I prefer the Rapidstrike to the Hyperstrike. It would come higher up the list, but to get the best out of it needs modification – stronger motors and a battery pack make it an awesome blaster. Still a very good one out of the box though.

A Brief History of NERF Guns

The original Nerf foam was a happy accident. Back in 1969, Reyn Guyer, the inventor of Twister, was working on a new game based on cavemen and throwing spongy rocks. The game never came to anything, but they soon realized the foam “rocks” people could throw around indoors were much more fun.

Parker Brothers turned the rocks into balls and released them under the NERF brand and they were a huge hit as NERF’s foam ammo is safe for limbs and fragile furnishings.

The 1990s saw the first rudimentary NERF blasters to fire these balls. While BB guns are too dangerous to fire at other people, and water guns require a warm day and open space, the NERF blaster provided the perfect solution – fun and safe indoors or out.

Foam projectiles have come a long way in that time. They developed into the go-to toy shooter and now sport advanced features such as battery-assisted automatic fire and wild arrays of modification and upgrade kits.

Of course, NERF still makes balls, and other throwing toys, but it is these soft, safe blasters we love so much here. So much more than just a child’s toy these days, there are also countless clubs and societies for kids and adults alike to arrange and play NERF wars. In fact, some of the biggest, most creative companies have fights with Nerf guns, bows, and spongy artillery to relieve stress and build camaraderie.

About Blaster Piece

Hi, my name is Chris. I put Blaster Piece together to provide the best NERF gun reviews, tips, and advice. Featuring everything from rapid-fire, magazine-fed blasters to tiny single shot pistols, anyone who still gets a kick out of action movies will understand the appeal of these foam blasters!

NERF pioneered these soft fire tys in the 1990s and they have now evolved into the amazingly exciting world it is today. NERF now boasts several ranges of blasters, including their standard dart firing blasters such as the Elite N-Strike, Modulus and Zombie Strike alongside the monster Mega range and the higher powered Rival range.

However these days NERF’s hardware has been joined on the scene by some great alternatives and there are some new kids in town such as BOOM Co and Buzz Bee.

So to celebrate this reign of foam, we have created Blaster Piece for soft-core shooting kids of all ages!

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